Overcoming the Darkness
by Lita Snow
Summary: It's about a Keybearer named Lita who has a strong spirit and is a great fighter, but still falls to the darkness. It's up to her friends Abry and Riku to help her come back. OC warning, AU warning, and probably OOC warning. Rated T just in case. All chapters newly updated, true ending currently in production.
1. Chapter 1: Heartless WarmUp

**A/N:** _Hey there! So this story deals with my character Lita, a Keyblade wielder_ _who was in love with Axel and was good friends with him before he died. She's still secretly trying to deal with his death and also trying to figure out how to deal with her feelings that are starting to form for Riku. I try not to explain things that have already happened much, but I think some of my descriptions are needed because I originally wrote this for a class, bearing in mind that most people don't know much about Kingdom Hearts, so kindly overlook the unnecessary repetition of information. Also, this story is full of OC's, at least 4 of them. Well, technically one's only half-OC, but meh. _

_A couple more things...first of all, this story takes place in an alternate universe. We call it the parallel universe, because this has an exactly-the-same copy of every world in the regular KH universe. The only one that's not doubled is The World That Never Was because that would be rather confusing. We also didn't double Radiant Garden because we wanted to actually know the characters, and that can be confusing with replicas of the worlds and their citizens. The way you travel between the real universe and the parallel is through the Dark Corridors (most people from the parallel universe, including Lita and Abry, cannot utilize them to cross into the normal universe. However, if you can use the powers of Darkness or are accompanied by someone who can (or you're just special like Sora) then the pathways are open to you). The Twilight Town that the story primarily takes place in is the one that was data-altered by DiZ, so everyone knows Roxas here. That leads me to the second point. I break canon here because Roxas is one of Abry's best friends and I need someone for her to hang out with when Lita is otherwise occupied, and Roxas is just amazing anyway. So instead of having him combined with Sora as he rightfully would be at this point, I retcon that and pretend he has his own body again._

_This half of the story is completed as of December 2011. Recently updated as of January 2014. Enjoy! _

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Chapter 1: Heartless Warm-Up_

It was just another normal morning in Twilight Town, warm and drowsy. A good portion of the city was still asleep when Lita slipped onto the window sill of her flat. She lifted her face to the breeze for a moment, basking in the tranquility of the day. Then she dropped down to the ground, landing nimbly as a cat, and set off toward the "haunted mansion". It wasn't really haunted, a girl named Naminé lived inside, and the rather daunting building often had Heartless and Nobodies swarming around it, but most citizens didn't really understand what was going on with the mansion so they simply avoided it under the easy label of "haunted". But Lita wasn't bothered by it. In fact, she was heading there for the sole purpose of destroying Heartless! She liked a good workout in the morning.

She approached the hole in the wall that separated the town from the forest. As she stepped through it, she wondered how it had come to be there. _It's really rather conveniently placed, leading almost directly to the mansion. Did someone blow up that part of the wall to gain access to it? I don't think there's any other way of reaching the mansion. Why was the mansion outside the walls of the town in the first place? _She mulled over the questions for a moment, then shrugged and thought, _I'll ask Naminé about it sometime. Maybe she'd know, or Haru. If not, Ansem surely does. _

Lita walked to the center of the forest area and simply stood, waiting. When no Heartless appeared, she rolled her eyes and summoned her Keyblade, fully aware that Heartless are always drawn to the Keyblades. Immediately, she spied dark shadows growing on the ground around her. She smirked and slid into a familiar battle stance, Keyblade poised before her, weight distributed more in the back leg than the front leg, allowing for faster movement.

The murky shapes on the ground melded into several black bodies surrounding her. Lita quickly identified them as Shadows, the most common type of Heartless. She silently beckoned to them in a "come and get me" fashion, and as one started toward her, she suddenly leapt at it, slashing her blade straight through it, taking out a few to either side with one strike. She spun around, whipping her blade through the air and decimating the remaining Shadows.

"Aw, come on, guys! Put a little effort into it! I'm never going to break a sweat like this," Lita complained. The Heartless seemed to answer her wish, as not a moment later five Soldiers in their clanking armor materialized. "Now that's a little more like it!"

She stabbed one through its center, destroying it before it could attack, then used the Soldiers' own signature move, Cyclone, against the farthest one from her, spiraling through the air and slamming into it, killing it instantly. She swept her blade at the closest Heartless, but it parried her blow. She attacked it again, but swapped directions mid-swing, crushing its unprotected side. Lita sensed movement from behind her and about-turned, blocking a Cyclone attack from first one, then the other remaining Heartless. Quickly cutting down the most recently blocked Soldier who was dazed beside her, she glanced about for the last one and caught sight of it attempting to sneak away. She immediately dispatched it with a well-placed Blizzard spell.

"That was better, but I could still use a bigger challenge!" she called out, just in case the Heartless decided to heed her request again. She waited for a minute, but it seemed that no more were going to show up in the area that day, so she de-summoned her Keyblade. She sighed, but wasn't too terribly upset. After all, the Heartless problem in Twilight Town had been decreasing rapidly since Lita and her best friend Abry had become Keyblade wielders a year before. And since less Heartless meant less danger for the people who lived there, she wasn't really going to complain.

Besides, if she really wanted to fight a horde of Heartless, all she need do was go to her blacksmith friend Haru's house. Haru had a constant flow of Heartless in her backyard due to the Hearts that seemed to enjoy gathering there. Lita supposed that Haru's own Heart was calling out to them. It was probably bored. Haru spent a good deal of her time ignoring the crystallized thing sitting in a cage on her belt. Lita knew that Haru wasn't intentionally cruel to it, but it was rather needy, like a young child, demanding constant attention that Haru was never in the mood to give. Haru would've likely joined with her Heart if she could have, but Haru's body could no longer accept it, her blood being made of mercury and all. If she joined with her heart now, it would kill her. No human can live without blood. Unfortunately, if she simply let her heart wander free, it was likely to either force a joining, not realizing the danger, or get caught by a Heartless and be trapped for who knows how long. Perhaps it was easier for a Nobody not to know where their heart was. _He_ certainly never had that problem—

Lita smacked her forehead lightly, and shook her head to clear her thoughts. _No! I'm not going there. I shouldn't think about him. I need to see Abry. She's probably awake by now, and she always cheers me up when I get broody like this. _She looped her arm around the nearest tree trunk and used it to swing herself back to face the city wall. She jogged back through the hole and into town. She ran to the arch situated directly below the window she had dropped from earlier that morning and paused, calling up to her flat. "Hey, Abry! You still here?"

Receiving no answer, she assumed Abry had already left home, likely to go bug Seifer or Hayner, which meant she could be found in the Sandlot, and failing that, up on the clock tower.


	2. Chapter 2: Mia

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_"Hey, Abry! You still here?" Receiving no answer, she assumed Abry had already left home, likely to go bug Seifer or Hayner, which meant she could be found in the Sandlot, and failing that, up on the clock tower._

_Chapter 2: Mia_

She took off again, and sped by a rather large alcove on her left. Behind her, Lita suddenly heard a high pitched yelp from the area she'd just passed. She stopped, startled, and backpedalled. She slipped into the square silently and scanned the space quickly for the source of the sound. Immediately, for the area was quite bare, she saw a small black dog, couldn't have been fully grown yet, and the back of a young woman in black who was soundly smacking the puppy with a stick.

Lita gasped, horrified, and dashed over to the dog, shielding him with her body. She caught the stick with her left hand as the girl swung down again, having already started the action before Lita's sudden appearance and could not halt her momentum. Lita glared up at her. "Just what do you think you're doing!?"

The girl stared at her for a moment. Lita used the time before she responded to observe her. She had short black hair, pale skin, and very compelling eyes that were gold flecked with green. She wore very simple clothing, a long sleeved black shirt and black pants, along with what appeared to be black boots, judging from the soles and heel shape. The only thing she had that was not black was a purple and green locket around her neck, hanging from a black cord. She was lovely in a regal sort of way.

Finally, the dark girl said, "He bit me," baring her right hand, which did indeed have pinpricks indicative of small teeth printed on it. "He's my dog; I have a right to punish him as I please. If I don't get rough, he doesn't get it."

Lita stared at her, rather shocked by her response. "That's not right! You can't just beat a living creature simply because it displeased you. He's still young; he probably doesn't understand that what he did was wrong. When he does something bad, certainly you can punish him, but thwacking him repeatedly with a stick is not going to help! It's just gonna make him scared and more likely to lash out in the future!" She easily tugged the stick out of the girl's hand and threw it against the far wall, out of reach. The puppy made as if to go after it, but the leash gripped firmly in his owner's hand made movement out of the question. "Oh, you see? He wants to play. Maybe he hasn't learned that biting isn't an acceptable form of playing with humans yet."

The girl looked at the dark puppy almost thoughtfully. "…Perhaps," said she after a moment. Then she asked hesitantly, "Could…would you listen to my story, just for a moment? There may be something you could help me with."

"Hmm? Sure, I don't see why not. I'm always happy to help."

"Great! Let's go find a seat?" The girl glanced around a moment, before seeing the collection of mixed-level rooftops. She walked over to a low platform that was likely used for the sole purpose of reaching higher ones and pulled herself up onto it. She didn't seem to be very athletic, given the struggle she faced. Lita followed and jumped quite easily onto the platform, settling beside the girl.

"Um…" Lita started, looking at the ground. The puppy was hopping up and down for some reason. It didn't look like he wanted to get up with them; it appeared more like he was in pain. Then she noticed how taut the leash was. The girl hadn't slackened her grip or extended the cord at all. The dog was having difficulty breathing. "Hey, let the leash go."

"What? Why? He might run off if I do."

"Yeah, but you're choking him!"

"No, he's fine, see? He's getting air." She seemed blandly unconcerned.

Lita glared at her again, and the girl looked a little disconcerted. "Is this another one of those moral issues?" she asked. Lita gave her a confused look, and the girl sighed. But she did drop the leash, and the puppy at once began sniffing around the alcove, taking interest in everything.

The two girls sat for a couple minutes watching him react to everything, leaping back if he followed a scent and ran into a wall, treating a random rock as his sworn enemy, jumping in surprise when a butterfly landed on his nose. The black girl watched with indifference, but Lita laughed at the puppy's antics. Eventually, the dark girl spoke up.

"What I wanted to talk to you about is this…My whole life I've been around people who don't care and treat everything as something that either helps them or harms them. I'm unfamiliar with your sense of morality and have no idea why I shouldn't do things that I do. I think I'm starting to understand why everyone avoids me. It's because they follow your way of life and not mine. But I'm tired of being alone. I want people to like me, but I don't know what I'm not supposed to do in this kind of society." She looked at her hands in her lap.

"So, do you mean to say that you'd like my help in figuring these things out?" Lita suggested, intrigued. She had never met someone like this girl before and it seemed as though it may be interesting.

"Y...yes. If you could show me what I'm missing, maybe I can finally feel like I'm a part of something."

"Well, I don't see why not. Yeah, I'll help you out. Stick with me and you can watch how others react in situations I find myself in. My friends and I are guardians, of a sort. We're probably some of the best examples you can find in this world." Lita smiled. "Can't say for sure about other worlds though. I'm sure there's at least one other guy out there who's probably got stricter morals than us, but he's busy saving other worlds. Maybe you'll see him sometime." The other girl raised an eyebrow briefly but said nothing.

"Anyway, I was on my way to meet up with my friend Abry. Why don't you come along? I'm sure Abry would love to meet you." Lita jumped down and held her hand out for the girl to take. "What's your name, by the way? I'm Lita."

The girl accepted the hand and carefully slid off the platform. "My name is Mia Cleften."

"All right, then, Mia. Let's go," Lita decided cheerfully.


	3. Chapter 3: Friends Appear

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_The girl accepted the hand and carefully slid off the platform. "My name is Mia Cleften." _

"_All right, then, Mia. Let's go," Lita decided cheerfully. _

_Chapter 3: Friends Appear_

They dropped Mia's dog off at the shop she was boarding at in the Tram Common, and then Lita led the way to the Sandlot, where they did indeed find Abry. The fiery redhead was arguing with the muscular but not-so-smart Rai over who was more awesome between herself and Seifer.

"But Seifer's won the Struggle, y'know?! He's way more awesome than you, y'know?!" Rai defended Seifer.

"If I recall, he LOST the Struggle last year, so he's obviously not as awesome as you'd like to believe. I am far cooler than him."

"W-well, he didn't really lose, y'know, he let your friend win! Yeah!" In the background, Seifer rolled his eyes. "Besides, he's won every other year, y'know?!"

"Oh really?" Lita questioned, entering the conversation. "You think he let me win? You looking to test that theory? Hey, Seifer, wanna duel?"

Seifer spoke from the wall he leaned against with arms crossed. "That's enough, Rai. Let it go. I'm not interested in rankings anyway. The rest of the town knows we're the Twilight Town Disciplinary Committee. We don't need to prove anything. What does it matter what a bunch of girls say?" Beside him, Fuu stared at him in protest, her brows slightly furrowed.

Lita recognized his way of giving in without actually saying it. "There, you see? He accepts my dominance in this matter. I beat him fair and square. So he is not the most awesome person here." Seifer glared at her. "And Abry is amazingly awesome because I say she is, and oh, guess who has a Keyblade, and who does not, in this argument of yours?"

Rai opened his mouth to reply but obviously couldn't form an argument fast enough and retreated. "Well, whatever, but Seifer's still more awesome, y'know?!" he said as he ran off to rejoin Seifer and Fuu, who were clearly now ignoring everyone else.

"Is not!" Abry called out once more, just to have the last word. Then she turned to Lita and shrugged. "I so won that." After properly greeting Lita, she noticed Mia standing behind her. "Oh, hi there! Who are you?" she asked, smiling brightly.

"This is Mia, Abry. She's going to be shadowing me for a while to learn about the town." Lita felt a small lie wouldn't hurt, and it wouldn't alienate her new friend.

"It's nice to meet you, then, Mia!" Abry held out her hand, which Mia took once she realized what she was supposed to do, and shook it warmly. Abry felt weirdly weightless for a fraction of a second, but it didn't last so she thought nothing of it. "Well, are we ready to go?"

"Go? What do you mean?" Lita asked, confused.

"What, you forgot? We were going to go over to Haru's today! Riku will be there too. He said he had nothing to do today, remember?"

Mia's eyes widened. Lita glanced at her before returning her gaze to Abry. "Oh, that's right! Wow, I'm surprised I forgot. Riku's often busy; you'd think I'd remember days when he's here. Hmm, I suppose that would be fine, as long as Mia's okay with it?" _I hope she says yes, I really want to go, _thought Lita.

Mia shrank back a little when the other two looked at her for her answer. Lita's thoughts were likely betrayed in her gaze. A little intimidated, she eventually said softly, "I don't mind," and the trio walked across the town to Haru's house.

The relatively small, three-floor house with an immense and unkempt backyard lay near the edge of town, right next to the wall. In fact, it was right beside the mansion that lay on the other side. If you went into the basement, you could follow a passage that connected directly to the mansion's library, and therefore, the hidden science lab beneath the floor of that library. The mansion's residents cared not about the passage. They actually approved it when Haru's house was built. After all, the owner of the mansion was Haru's foster father, DiZ, or Ansem the Wise. And because Haru was a genius metal forger, it was of value to them both to have access to the other's place.

Lita, Abry, and Mia approached the door and knocked simply for courtesy's sake before barging in. Lita whispered to Mia, "By the way, it's not actually 'right' for us to do this. But Haru is our friend and she really doesn't care unless it's before noon."

"Hey, Haru! You awake yet?" Abry called. They received no answer. Lita and Abry sighed in resignation, and then picked their way through the front room to reach the forge/bedroom at the back. There Haru lay, completely passed out in her bed.

Lita got _really _close and shouted, "Haru! You have guests!" As Haru struggled to wake up, she added, "And before you ask, YES it is indeed after 3."

"It's still too early…" mumbled the blue-haired 18-year-old. Abry rolled her eyes and dragged her out of bed. She hit the floor with a thump, and thus, decided to get up.

"Haru, you yourself dictated that 3 o'clock is the earliest. Well, it's the latest for us, so deal with it. Seriously though, we always come over at 3, why is it you can't get used to getting up then?" questioned a perplexed Lita.

"No comment," replied Haru.

"Well, anyway Haru, this here with us is Mia. I'm showing her around town."

Haru stared at her for a moment with an unreadable expression, especially at her locket, before saying coolly, "Welcome to Twilight Town."

"Is that the best you can manage? Really Haru, for someone who forges with fire so well, you don't retain any of its passion."

"Of course not. Forging requires a level head. To get caught up in the blaze would create an unsteady blade with volatile effects. If I wasn't coldly logical, my blades would not be nearly as perfect as they are," Haru stated without an ounce of humility.

"Ah, whatever. Oh yeah, when is Riku coming?" Lita asked, trying to play the question off as casual.

They heard a knock on Haru's door. Lita started at the unexpected answer to her query. "Apparently right now," said Abry. "I'll go get the door!" She bounced up energetically while Lita and Haru sat on the latter's bed and Mia stood feeling rather awkward behind Lita.

They heard a happy, "Hey Riku. Oh, Roxas! Hi! We haven't seen you in ages! How are you doing?" and Abry bounded back into the room with Riku and Roxas following in her wake.

Roxas said simply, "Oh, you know, I've been busy. It's good to see you."

Riku smiled, saying, "Hey guys. Hey Lita, how's life?" whereupon he ruffled her hair softly.

Lita frowned and protested against the action, but answered, "Everything's fine. Not particularly exciting, but it works." She spent a brief moment trying to get her hair to lay flat again, without much success.

The silver-haired boy glanced behind her to see Mia staring at him with a strange knowing look. He stared back, confused. "Have we met before? You seem familiar."

Mia broke eye contact and said quietly, "No, we haven't. You must be thinking of someone else."

Lita looked at Mia with a slightly puzzled expression on her face. _I'd been wondering that myself when she reacted to his name earlier. Have they really never met? _Lita felt a little uneasy but let it go after a moment.

Abry, noticing the strange atmosphere, decided to change the subject. "Well, Riku, this is Mia, Mia, this is Riku and Roxas. Speaking of Roxas, how did you get here?"

Haru said blandly, "I imagine he walked."

Abry glared at her. "You know what I mean."

Roxas smiled and answered, "I was wandering around town and ran into Riku on his way here. He told me you all were hanging out here for awhile so I decided to join him. You don't mind, do you?"

"Definitely not!" Abry grinned. "You make things more fun!"

"Everything makes things more fun for you, Abry. You're an inexhaustible source of energy. I ought to use you as fuel for my forge," Haru told her with a perfectly straight face while gesturing to said forge on the opposite wall.

Abry glared at her. "_Anyway_ guys, what's new?"

"Nothing much," replied the boys.

"I've been working with Sora lately, but he's doing perfectly fine with Donald and Goofy. There aren't any real conflicts right now, so I figure I'll 'go on vacation' and stick around here for a while," Riku announced.

"Really? That's cool," said Lita. She was happy that Riku was going to be around. They never got to see much of him now that he, Sora, and Kairi had finally joined up.

"Yeah. Besides, I imagine Sora would appreciate some 'alone time' with Kairi. It's a little awkward with me there sometimes," Riku admitted, somewhat embarrassed.

"Oh, hey, guys…" Haru spoke up suddenly, gaining their attention. "Take a look outside at my yard."

Everyone crowded by the window. For a moment, they didn't notice anything because they weren't sure what they were looking for. Then Abry said "Oh!" and pointed. _Ohhh, _thought Lita, _there are a bunch of Heartless swarming around out there._

"Well, Keybearers, go have fun. Mia, since you can't use the Keyblade you can stay up here with me and watch. Wouldn't want you to get hurt by accident," Haru suggested darkly, her eyes boring into the girl with a strange feeling the onlookers couldn't place.

"Haru, don't scare her. But it is probably better to hang out up here for a bit while we take the Heartless out, Mia. Also, don't let Haru psyche you out. She knows you can't use a weapon because she forged every Keyblade we use today and several other weapons besides. She has a special bond with all her weapons, and is acutely aware of all their owners and locations. And even if you can use some weapon, only Keyblades can permanently destroy Heartless, so it's best if we go take care of them. By the way, Haru, speaking of hearts, your Heart hasn't spoken up once today. Is it all right?" Lita inquired.

"Yes, it's perfectly fine. Go destroy the Heartless before I kick you down there."

"Okay, okay, we're going! See you in a bit, you two. Come on, Roxas, let's go kill things!" Abry exclaimed joyfully.


	4. Chapter 4: TagTeams and an Ambush

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

"_Okay, okay, we're going! See you in a bit, you two. Come on, Roxas, let's go kill things!" Abry exclaimed joyfully. _

_Chapter Four: Tag-Teams and an Ambush_

Lita, Abry, Roxas, and Riku all left the house, heading around back to the overgrown yard in which Heartless, especially Shadows, loved to hide. After about an hour, they returned, weary but exhilarated. The tension in the room that had gathered in their absence dissipated immediately. Mia automatically reached out and clung to Lita once she sat back down again.

"How'd it go?" asked Haru, looking at the triumphant fighters. From Mia's relieved sigh, it was clear that Haru had not taken her eyes off her since they left. Lita wondered why Haru felt she needed such observation.

"Ha! It was great!" Abry replied animatedly. "We all started out on our own, but we somehow ended up working in teams, Roxas and me, and Lita and Riku. It was really fun!"

"Yeah it was!" Lita agreed. "You guys were fun to watch. Your fighting styles are so different. Abry smacks at things and sets everything on fire (where are you finding all this hairspray anyway? I never use it!), but Roxas, well, still smacks at things, but he zips around the field as if he were the wind. And yet somehow you guys work really well together, zooming around the field decimating Heartless!"

"Well, what about you and Riku? You guys are a tag-team of death! I saw you guys switching out constantly. You'd rush in and attack, and when the enemy went to strike back, bam! There was Riku, in perfect defense mode with that Dark Shield of his! After which you'd charge in again and destroy more Heartless. It was systematic and flawless. How do you guys do that with no practice?" Abry seemed to be a bit jealous.

"How did YOU guys do that awesome fire and wind area effect with no practice? That took out everything within like 20 feet!"

"And also made a large black circle in the middle of my yard," Haru interrupted. "You will be out there planting grass seeds later, you know."

"Aw, come on, Haru! You're always after us to cut your grass anyway!" Abry protested.

"Cut, not burn."

"But fire brings about rebirth! Like forest fires and phoenixes! It'll grow back even better than before without planting new grass."

"You're not getting out of it."

"Haru!"

"Phoenixes don't exist, by the way. Using them as an example is a fail move on your part."

Abry and Haru argued back and forth for some time while the others sat back and watched the show. Riku glanced at Lita and Mia occasionally throughout the argument, seemingly still confused about where he'd seen the new girl before. Mia was still clinging to Lita, and the latter was beginning to find it irritating.

"Is something the matter, Mia? You haven't let go of me for the past half hour we've been sitting here," Lita said quietly, so as not to interrupt the others' comedy routine.

"N-no, nothing's wrong. It's just…I don't really like being around so many people, and Haru scares me. Can we please leave soon? I know they're your friends, but…"

Lita suddenly felt exhausted. "Yeah, it's fine, I'm feeling really tired anyway. Hey guys," she raised her voice so the others could hear, "We should really get going now. I'm pretty burned out from all the fighting I did today and Mia wants to get home. We'll see you later."

Riku stood up as well. "I'm going to head out too. I'll accompany you."

"Well, okay, I guess," said Abry. "I'll see you at home tonight then, Lita."

"Yep."

The three left Haru, Abry, and Roxas behind, and soon enough Abry started a new conversation as they walked outside. Lita travelled with Riku on one side and Mia on the other. They didn't say much as they advanced, as Riku was often quiet, and it appeared Mia rarely talked around anyone other than Lita. Lita noticed that Riku kept rubbing his forehead.

"Something the matter, Riku?"

"Apparently. I have a headache coming on, it seems."

Mia at last spoke up. "That's not good. You should go lie down. You wouldn't want it to turn into a migraine or something."

"Hmm. That's probably true. I'll do that as soon as I see you two home."

"Riku, you're such a gentleman! Whatever would we do without you?" Lita teased.

"…Lita, can we please hurry?" Mia sounded urgent.

"What's up, Mia? What's the trouble?"

She said nothing, glancing behind her. Lita looked back as well.

"Oh God."

_How the hell did that happen? Why didn't we sense them?!_ Hot on their trail were dozens of Heartless. And they weren't your garden variety Shadows either. They were higher-ranking, Soldiers, Large Bodies, Yellow Operas, Blue Rhapsodies, Red Nocturnes, etc. Granted, these weren't exactly strong enemies, but there were a LOT of them.

"Lita, run. Get out of here, I'll hold them off." Riku summoned his Keyblade and slid into his battle stance.

"You know I can't do that, Riku. I'm not going to just leave you here to fend all these off. I'm fighting too."

"Lita! Your first priority is Mia! She can't fight; get her somewhere safe, _now!_ " He was somewhat angry, and rightly so. As much as she wanted to help him take out the Heartless, a civilian must be taken care of first and foremost.

"Rrgh, fine, but don't you dare get yourself killed, you hear me?" Lita grabbed Mia's wrist and pulled her along the streets, taking care to stay in more narrow areas that she could take on enemies in one at a time.

Once she got Mia safely home, she instructed her to sit tight and not to leave her house. She raced back to where she'd split up from Riku. The area was pretty much deserted. There were a few stragglers, which she quickly dispatched, but on the whole, the horde was gone. She searched for Riku and at last found him, unconscious on the ground.

"Oh no, come on." She frantically turned him face up and visibly cringed at the number of scratches and burn marks from Heartless claws and spells that covered his body. She tried to wake him up, but nothing helped. She attempted to heal him, and managed to make some of the wounds fade, but on the whole, wasn't very successful. She was too panicked to cast spells properly.

From out of the dark, a voice uttered, "This is your fault, you know."


	5. Chapter 5: Distance, Proposition

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_From out of the dark, a voice uttered, "This is your fault, you know."_

_Chapter Five: Distance, Proposition_

Lita jerked up, hunting for the voice's owner. Out of the shadows crept Mia. Lita sighed in relief. "It's just you. Your voice sounded different for a moment. Didn't I tell you to stay at home?"

"I didn't want to be alone. What if they'd attacked me after you left? The safest place for me is near you, so I followed you here. But, you do realize this was your fault. You left him behind to fight them all on his own. You did not have to take me away. You could have stayed and fought beside him whether he liked it or not. But because you did not do so, he is hurt and unconscious. So you were the one who caused this. Your decision hurt your friend."

Her cruel words cut her to the bone. But she was right. Lita could have remained and simply tried to protect Mia instead, but that may have resulted in Mia getting injured. Which outcome was better?

Lita used Aero and carefully levitated Riku back to Haru's, where the others clustered around him and took care of his wounds, while Lita stood back and looked on without expression. Slipping out while they fussed over him, Lita accompanied Mia back to her boarding house and stayed with her. Since she had let Riku down by taking care of Mia, she wasn't going to stop now. Mia would be her first priority in everything until he himself told her otherwise.

The next few weeks were somewhat of a blur. She spent all her time with Mia, leaving her other friends completely alone.

Abry ran to her when she saw her go by the Sandlot. "Hey Lita, Seifer and his gang and I were just about to practice sparring. Come join us, you can show us some of your awesome offense!"

Lita glanced at her, then at Mia beside her. "Sorry, Abry, I don't feel like it today."

Later that day, Abry passed Lita in the streets and called out to her again. "Lita, Roxas and I were gonna go up to the clock tower for some ice cream. You should come with!"

Again Lita replied, "Sorry, not today."

A couple days passed, and Lita caught sight of Abry hanging with Hayner and his friends in their hideaway in the back alley. Abry noticed her and motioned for Lita to join them, but Lita shook her head and walked on, Mia at her heels. Mia glanced at the foursome behind the curtain and smiled imperceptibly.

"Lita, do you wanna go to the beach? We haven't been there in forever!"

"Sorry, Abry, not today."

"Hey, do you wanna go visit Haru?"

"Not today, Abry."

"Hey Lita, do you wanna…?"

"Sorry, not today."

After a while, Abry gave up asking her and spent her time with Roxas instead. Eventually Riku woke up, fully recovered, but Lita refrained from seeing him, still blaming herself for everything. And he never came to see her.

Haru was never one to seek out anyone, anyway, so never running into her wasn't surprising. She simply observed everything without comment.

Lita was a strange being in that she had attachment issues. She couldn't handle being apart from her best friends for pretty much any length of time. This was especially true when it came to Abry. The very fact that she was completely separated from her for such a long period of time was thought to be very odd by most of the populace. A couple times, some of the people asked her about it, but she simply gave them a polite, noncommittal answer and left them standing there on the road.

This wasn't to say that she lost all emotion. Her mind was a storm of anger, guilt, love, and confusion with no outlet into which she could pour her thoughts. Mia continuously warned her of the consequences her actions could produce, so she was obviously the wrong person to talk to. She had pushed away anyone else whom she'd usually confide in. And still Riku did not come to see her. At some point, she had come to the conclusion that he was upset and blamed her for the injuries he'd sustained. But she was no longer sure of what was truth and what was possibility. Mia only ever told her the realistic outcomes of what she could do, which meant that any results including happiness were rare and far between. In many cases, she had to choose between a bad outcome and a worse one. All of this made her head feel like it would tear apart. Her own sense of morality was being crushed under the weight of being alone.

One day, Lita and Mia went out to the forest past the city wall. They ran into a giant bearlike Heartless, and though she fought as hard as she could to defeat it, at last Lita collapsed, exhausted from her constant mental torment, and couldn't finish it off. As it raised its huge fist to give her a finishing blow, she suddenly heard a snap behind her, and the Heartless suddenly burst into green flames with black tips. Mia walked around in front of Lita, her dog suddenly following behind her, and tugged her to a standing position.

"It is time I told you who I am, although I suspect that you already have an idea." Instead of Mia's higher teenage pitch, the voice that spoke to her now was that which she heard the night of the ambush. It was lower, far more seductive, and belonged to an entirely different woman. "You should learn to recognize the powers of hell when they are right in front of you."

_Of course, _thought Lita. "Maleficent."

"Indeed," Mia Cleften, or rather, Maleficent said. The teenage girl opened the locket around her neck and was enveloped in her signature green flames. When the fire vanished, Maleficent in all her dark glory stood before Lita, who simply looked impossibly weary. Maleficent rolled her eyes. "Idiot child, have a pick-me-up." She threw a ball of green fire at her, and immediately Lita felt completely restored. Her head felt much clearer than it had for the past month.

This helped her to notice that the little black dog was gone. However, a large onyx raven now perched upon its mistress' staff. Lita appraised it distastefully. _Ahhh, of course, the dog was always the bird. How did I not see the similarities before? Her color scheme and lack of conscience should have been a dead giveaway. Riku noticed. He thought he recognized her when he first saw her. Haru also reacted differently to her. I wonder if she knew right away. Looks like I've been pretty stupid._

"Now, child, I want you to listen to me. When you first met my other self, I placed a spell upon you. It made you more willing to follow out my desires, and more susceptible to my words. I blocked all of your perceptions of me to cloak my dark aura, I made your body react certain ways when it suited me, I caused pain to those around you to make it easier for you to leave them. I can even control your very movement." She gestured and Lita summoned her Keyblade and attacked a tree repeatedly without her consent.

_What?! This is not right! How dare you control my body, it's not fair! _Lita was fairly trembling with poorly concealed rage, and though she didn't want to admit it, fear.

"I tell you this because I am willing to remove it if you agree to enter my service," Maleficent finished.

"Why should I trust you? You've done nothing but hurt me and those around me."

"Contrary to your beliefs, I do not wish to enslave you, nor do I want to hurt you. I truly wish you to assist me of your own free will. I am not above using other methods, however, to get what I want. If I must force you, I shall.

"If you do not join me willingly, I will force you to slaughter your friends, and then force you to serve me regardless. It would not be difficult."

"You're lying. No way could you have that much power!" Lita tried to sound confident, but her voice cracked, betraying her. If Maleficent had managed to orchestrate this much already, perhaps she really could make her kill her friends.

"Are you willing to risk their lives on that?" Maleficent responded smoothly.

Lita said nothing, for the answer was obvious: she couldn't be certain that it wasn't true. Maleficent was a vastly powerful sorceress.

"Lita, my pet…I do not expect you to join me for nothing. I can be of help to you, as well. Remember Riku? He was once on my side. I taught him the powers of darkness, and they proved to be of much use to him. And he was not overwhelmed. He learned to control them and now, as you well know, he has no difficulty managing them." Maleficent's voice grew soft, soothing. "This I can give to you, a chance to become stronger. You want to grow stronger, to protect others, just as Riku did. I can teach you the same."

Lita couldn't deny the truth of her words. The powers of darkness _were_ strong. The Keyblade Master Sora himself struggled against them daily. Though Riku was a bit of a sore subject at the moment, he was a prime example as well. And she wanted to be stronger, she really did. But…

"You need not fear the darkness. It is only another path towards the same ends. And, my dear, if that is still not yet enough…there is one thing more I can offer you." Maleficent lifted Lita's chin to draw her eyes to her own. "I can return your dearest Axel to you."

Lita's eyes shot wide open. "I-impossible! No one can revive the d-dead…" she whispered.

"Oh, but I can," the sorceress disputed, a small smile sliding onto her face. "If you come with me, if you pledge your service to me, I will restore his life and give him back to you. You know he loves you, he will be happy for you no matter the road you take to the future. But I cannot do so without you." Maleficent released her. "I will return in one hour. You have until then to make your choice. Join me and receive power and your lover, or refuse me and lose your friends forever." With this, Maleficent vanished in green flames, leaving Lita to war with herself alone.


	6. Chapter 6: War with Herself

**Overcoming the Darkness **

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_"I will return in one hour. You have until then to make your choice. Join me and receive power and your lover, or refuse me and lose your friends forever." With this, Maleficent vanished in green flames, leaving Lita to war with herself alone._

_Chapter Six: War with Herself_

_I want to be strong. _

_But do I have to give my heart to the darkness to be so? _

_The path of light is too slow._

_It's supposed to be that way. That way you can learn when you stumble instead of getting washed further away. _

_But it's unforgiving. If one messes up bad enough even once, they'll never be seen the same way again. The darkness accepts everyone, not just those perfect enough to never fail. _

_But if I take that road, can I ever return? _

_Riku did. If I try the dark path, and find that it isn't working out, I can always go back. _

_But I won't be the same anymore._

_Everyone is always changing, what does it matter?_

_Because what if I change so much that no one recognizes me? What if I become someone entirely different? What about my friends then?_

_Yes, what about my friends? Can I protect them the way I am? The darkness can make me stronger. And then I really can protect them. _

_But what if I hurt them instead?_

_In the long run they'll understand. They'll see that I wanted the strength only to protect them. Riku would understand. _

_Riku hasn't even talked to me for weeks. I don't think he cares one way or another. It was my fault he got hurt so badly. He probably never wants to see me again. _

_Ugh, why do I keep bringing that up? It just makes me feel worse and isn't helping anything. Anyway, strength from darkness aside, Maleficent said she'd bring Axel back if I helped her. _

_Axel…he was always on my side. I miss him more than anything. His presence, his smile, his laugh, his touch… He loved me, and I still love him. He always supported me and helped me even when I didn't deserve it. If I join Maleficent, I can have him back. _

_Then do it! If he's with me, that's all I need. …I know what I need to do. _


	7. Chapter 7: Experimentation

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

Then do it! If he's with me, that's all I need. …I know what I need to do.

_Chapter Seven: Experimentation_

Maleficent returned exactly one hour later, as promised. "Tell me now, child. What is your decision?"

Lita took a deep breath and stood tall. "I will help you, in return for the strength of Darkness and Axel's resurrection."

Maleficent smiled, "An excellent choice indeed. Follow me, my dear."

She opened a dark corridor in front of her and walked through. Lita followed without much thought. They emerged from the corridor in front of the Twilight Town train station. After musing briefly, Lita decided that they came here because there was more room.

Maleficent turned to face her. "Now then. Accept my gift, Lita."

A globe of darkness suddenly encased Lita, and for a moment she tried to fight against it. Then she realized that in order to progress, she'd have to lower her defenses and let it flow into her. She did so and forced herself not to throw her shields back up. She felt it slip through every crack in her walls and melt into the light she still held in her heart. She shuddered as it dimmed and tainted. The darkness was so wrong and so right simultaneously. Her mind couldn't decide which side to believe, the one that told her to quickly shut it out before it dyed her black, or the one that told her it was okay, let it fill her and make her stronger. Eventually, she let her mind go blank and allowed the Darkness surrounding her to do as it wished.

When she awoke some time later, she felt changed and yet the same in a manner she couldn't identify. Maleficent simply told her "experiment" before she left. "You know how to find me," she said. And Lita did. All she had to do was open a corridor and think of Maleficent and she'd travel through it to a location nearby. Of course, she needed to make sure she knew how to open a corridor first.

She held out her hand and thought of the dark passageways she'd been in before. She heard the signature "shoom" sound of a portal opening and looked up to see an open Dark Corridor in front of her. She walked through it and it closed behind her. Then she thought about the clock tower and walked forward in the darkness. Suddenly she found herself atop the tower in the same place she'd been thinking of in her mind. _Well, I know how this works now. I'd better be careful not to lose focus in there or a stray thought might send me somewhere completely different from where I want to go. _

She portalled herself back down to the main area and decided she needed to see how her new powers worked in combat. However, Heartless rarely came to the train station, and she didn't really want to leave the wide open space. She remembered that Maleficent could summon Heartless in a heartbeat and thought she'd try it herself. She focused and imagined Shadows forming on the ground around her and pulling themselves up into tangible creatures. She opened her eyes and there they were! Exactly as she had pictured them. They stood there rather uncertainly, having seemingly no idea why they had come there. They didn't attack her, so Lita figured it was safe to assume they considered her on their side. She summoned her Keyblade to see how they'd react to it, but gasped upon seeing it.

It was no longer the blade she knew. Instead of silver, it was entirely black. The lion heads on either end were now draconic and appeared ferocious rather than noble. And the other designs on the key had become extremely sharp and dangerous. Part of her heart cried out for her old blade, but she displayed no further reaction.

The Heartless also showed no reaction. They looked at the blade with interest, but did nothing. Lita made a quiet sound of observation and then proceeded to use them as testing dummies. She started attempting all the moves she'd seen Riku do before, and found that she could do all of the offensive ones, especially the one that was like Sliding Dash but with a powerful punch of Dark Energy attached, but she was unable to do anything defensive. She wished she could at least form the Dark Shield move that Riku used on a regular basis but that too eluded her.

Eventually she stopped trying. She'd annoyed the Heartless enough anyway. The powers of Darkness didn't do much against them. The Keyblade itself could still destroy them, but the attacks paired with dark energy didn't hurt them much. That she found very interesting, because Riku was perfectly capable of dispatching Heartless with his power. What was different about hers? Still, they were tired of getting beat on, so she sent them away.

She did feel stronger, but it bothered her that she still felt unsure if she was doing the smart thing. Was darkness really the answer?


	8. Chapter 8: Riku Returns

**A/N: **_OOC warning for Riku at the end of this chapter. Just in case you were wondering. I tried, though, I really tried. _

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_She did feel stronger, but it bothered her that she still felt unsure if she was doing the smart thing. Was darkness really the answer?_

_Chapter Eight: Riku Returns_

"Lita!"

The girl was sitting on one of the ledges surrounding the train station. She had her face to the sun, her back to the station doors, as well as this new visitor.

"Riku," she acknowledged blandly. She did not face him, nor was she surprised by his arrival. She had sensed his coming for some time now. "Tell me, for I can't decide: Is the sun always setting here, or always rising?"

"What's happened with you? What have you done?" Ah, now she saw. He had come because he found out about her change to the darkness. She figured that Haru had informed him. She would have known immediately because her Keyblade changed.

"Don't you approve? I'm the same as you. I can draw on the dark powers now. I'm growing stronger thanks to Maleficent."

"What the hell's wrong with you? Maleficent used me, just as she's using you! I don't know what she's promised you but this is without a doubt the wrong decision!"

"Do you think so? I think you're being hypocritical. You use the powers of darkness on a regular basis. You don't have the right to tell me no." Where was this sharp criticism coming from? Lita wasn't entirely sure why she was speaking to him this way, but regardless, his refusal to acknowledge her decision was beginning to anger her.

A short, humorless laugh escaped his throat. "Maybe so, but the biggest hypocrite here is you, Lita! You were the one who was so strong and sure in the light. You were the one who was never fazed by the lure of the darkness. You were the one who told me that Abry protected your light and that once I found someone to protect mine, I'd never be in danger of falling prey to the darkness again. You were the one who said that you'd always remain part of the light! What happened to the Lita who believed that?"

Lita finally turned to face him. The sun cast shadows on her face, shining brilliantly past her body, making it impossible to see her expression, and her tone was equally indifferent. "She was too weak. The light failed her. She listened to it and thanks to that her friend nearly died. She didn't have the strength to protect the ones she loved and finally realized that darkness was the answer. Can you say that you don't understand?" she said softly.

"No, I do understand, but trust me when I say that I wish I didn't. Lita, you were so strong already, don't let the darkness convince that it'll make you stronger. It won't change anything; it'll just cause you more pain. I speak from experience, you have to believe me," Riku urged.

Lita echoed his earlier laugh. "You really don't get it, do you? It's because of you that I turned to the darkness in the first place! And Maleficent has promised to give me that which I most desire…she will return Axel to me."

Myriad expressions ran across Riku's face, anger, confusion, disbelief, and partial understanding. "Maleficent can't bring anyone back from the dead. Yes, she's powerful, but that's impossible even for her. Even if she managed to do something, you'd have just the shell of a man, nothing more. She couldn't return his soul to its prior vessel. He wouldn't be the one you knew. Is that really what you want? Are you so obsessed with him that you don't care?"

Lita hid her feelings of doubt. She didn't want to believe his words, no matter how convincing. "It changes little. You can't change my mind, Riku." She heard Maleficent's voice in her mind, "_Fight him. Prove to him that you are stronger now than you were before you embraced the darkness._"

"All right, then, fine. If you don't accept it, then fight me. I'll force you to see that I'm stronger now!" Lita jumped off the ledge and walked to the center of the plaza, summoning her now-Dark Keyblade.

"Fine. I'll prove to you that you're wrong." Riku joined her resignedly and settled into his fighting stance.

Lita initiated the battle, dashing forward suddenly. Riku sidestepped and slashed at her as she passed. She pranced out of reach, then spun and used her Dark Sliding Dash. He blocked with Dark Shield and counterattacked. His Keyblade, Way to the Dawn, slid through the air as fluidly as water. Lita couldn't block in time and took the hit. She backed off a couple paces and circled him. He turned with her and waited. She quickly slid in and assaulted him with a flurry of rapid blows. He fended off every one of them, but before he could counter, she swiftly executed an undercut and caught his forearm with her blade, drawing a long line, jagged as a result of the dragon design on its tip, stretching from about midway to his wrist before she danced away.

She taunted him, "I claim first blood! What now?"

He said nothing, just glanced at her with an expression she couldn't place, casting a quick Cure on himself and healing the shallow cut with ease. Lita frowned and attacked again, going for a downward head shot. Riku defended with Dark Shield again and countered. Their blades caught and he forced her back with his body strength. She can be as powerful as she liked, she was still a girl fighting against a guy. Physically she was at a disadvantage. She stumbled and he took the chance to slice at her own arm, which she didn't manage to block. He slit a horizontal cut across her shoulder.

She glared and attempted to heal it, but she couldn't. Confusion lit her features. She'd never had trouble with Cure before, except for the night Riku was seriously injured, and that was only because she'd been panicking. Now she couldn't heal at all.

"Are you unable to heal, Lita? That's strange, I never had a problem with it," Riku responded to her earlier jibe. If she was so intent on comparing them, he'd oblige.

"Grr!" Lita lunged at him, ignoring the blood on her arm. His blade was as sharp as a finely honed katana. The tip of the blade was seriously dangerous. Aside from the slight burning from the incision, there was no collateral damage on her arm.

He blocked and threw her back again. She was losing her temper, even though she knew that it was never good when fighting. Anger makes one reckless. She dove in again, and they traded blows for a few moments before she dropped to the ground and knocked his legs out from under him.

"Martial arts, 'friend.' Completely worth it."

He snapped back upright again, barely in time to catch a slash from Lita's Keyblade. He shoved her to the side and smacked her on her uninjured shoulder with his own blade, Lita failing to defend herself once again. Then he executed a Sliding Dash to get on her other side and swiftly stabbed her hand, forcing her to release her Keyblade. He knocked her own feet out from under her and pinned her to the ground.

Lita lay still, dazed and struggling to regain her breath. She couldn't believe what had just happened. _I lost! But I should be stronger than him! Why? Why didn't I win? Aren't I right? Didn't I make the right decision?_

Riku watched her lose the will to fight and released her. The draconic blade disappeared, its usefulness gone for the moment with its current master no longer able to continue. "You don't know why you lost, do you? First, you let your anger cloud your judgment, which I'm certain you're aware of. Second, you were so focused on offense that your defense was sorely lacking. And third, I repeat my statement that the darkness has not made you any stronger. You're no better than you were before. In fact, you're worse. The Lita I know wouldn't have fought me with the intention to hurt me regardless of how angry she was." Lita realized that the unidentifiable expression she'd seen earlier had been disappointment in her.

She slowly sat up. "You just don't understand," she started, struggling to remain calm. "I have to be stronger. This was the fastest way I thought I could do that. I can't let that night happen again. I just can't."

"What night, Lita? What are you so upset about?"

"How can you ask me that? You blame me for what happened!"

"Woah, seriously, what are you talking about? What do I blame you for?"

Lita stared at him incredulously. "That night weeks ago when that horde of Heartless ambushed us! You stayed behind to fend them off while I dragged Mia, Maleficent, whatever! to safety. Because I left you to fight alone, you were seriously injured and didn't recover for a week! After you did recover, you never came to see me. I assumed you were furious with me for leaving you to take care of Mia. You can't tell me you don't remember that!"

Comprehension filled Riku's face. "Is that what you thought? Lita, I wasn't angry at you. You did what you were supposed to in that situation. I know you would've been at my side in a heartbeat if I'd asked you to. But I ordered you to take care of Mia because her safety mattered more than both of ours. I'd have no right to be mad at you for doing what I told you to, and besides, I would've been actually upset if you'd ignored me and stayed to fight anyway. You know you wouldn't have forgiven yourself if a civilian had been hurt because you didn't take care of them. It was not your fault that I was injured. You did the right thing," Riku assured her.

"But if you weren't angry, why didn't you ever come to see me and talk to me?"

"Well, as soon as I recovered, Sora called for my help and I had to leave right away. I wasn't able to get back until just now. If I'd known you were upset, I would've come to see you right away. I didn't know this had bothered you so much, and for that I'm sorry. You thought I hated you…that couldn't be further from the truth." He pulled her into his arms and she started to cry.

Within her, Lita felt that small, battered ball of light gain sudden strength and purify itself of the darkness encasing it. The renewed light slowly burned away the darkness inside her mind and heart, leaving her feeling crystal clear. She suddenly felt happiness welling up inside and hugged Riku tightly. _I didn't realize how trapped I felt._

He smiled softly as he pulled away. "I know Axel still has claim on your heart. Just remember that I'm always here for you. Maybe someday, when you've fully come to terms with it, you'll look at me."

Lita returned his smile. "Thank you. I'll be sure to commit that to memory," she said wryly.

Riku stood, pulling her up with him. "Do you remember when you told me that one day I'd find the person who would protect my light?"

"Yes, of course. You mentioned this earlier yourself."

"Yeah…Well, you are my light, Lita. As long as you're here, I'll never have to worry about falling back into darkness again."

Lita beamed. "You can count on me from now on! I'll never make this mistake again. I don't think the darkness really wants me anyway. I'm much too indecisive for it!"

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Ah, look over there, Lita." He pointed to the archway leading to Market Street. She saw a flash of green and red before she was knocked to the ground by a certain fiery girl.

"You idiot! You had me worried to death when Haru told me you'd gone to the Dark Side!" Abry cried before wrapping Lita in a crushing hug. "Don't you ever do that again!"

"I won't, I won't, I promise!" Lita laughed. Over her shoulder, Lita saw Haru leaning against a pillar of the arch and Roxas lounging nearby. Abry finally released her and started chastising her as Lita took the opportunity to cast Cure and heal her minor wounds. She sighed, massively relieved at how easily the magic flowed again. Abry, assuming the sigh was directed at her, glared in mock annoyance, though her grin betrayed her true feelings.


	9. Chapter 9: The End, For Now

**A/N:** _Final chapter of this half! Why do I end it the way I do? Because I'm just that cruel.  
>I do have another chapter coming soon in which I write an alternate ending so that the storyline is actually <em>complete_ since I have put the story on infinite hiatus. When one loses their muse, you know, that kind of puts a stop to a story like this that relies on that certain muse. So look for that in the next couple months (hopefully). I will leave this chapter posted, but there will be a 10__th__ chapter that has what will be the 'true' ending. Thanks for reading!_

**Overcoming the Darkness**

_Last chapter's closing line: _

_She sighed, massively relieved at how easily the magic flowed again. Abry, assuming the sigh was directed at her, glared in mock annoyance, though her grin betrayed her true feelings. _

_Chapter Nine: The End…For Now_

Suddenly the sky grew dark. Abry stopped chattering and even Haru became alert. In the center of the plaza, lightning struck once and green flames billowed up around the area. Maleficent appeared in the midst of them.

"Why, Lita. I see that you have lost the dark powers I so kindly gave to you. Did you think that I would not notice?"

"Maleficent, I'm done with you. I don't want your powers, and I don't want your dark promises that you weren't going to fulfill anyway! My friends are my power and they'll protect my light to the end!" Lita quoted Sora.

"Oh I do not doubt that. But I am not so willing to release you. I had you once, I can get you again."

"Your spells won't work on me now that I'm aware of them!" Lita summoned her Keyblade, noting with great pleasure that the weapon had returned to its true appearance.

"I never said I would bewitch you. I am taking you back with me, Lita. Just try to fend off the darkness when you are alone and surrounded by it at all times! How will your friends 'protect' you then?" Maleficent summoned dozens of Heartless, filling the square. The others quickly grabbed their weapons and started destroying them as fast as they could to get close enough to protect Lita, but too late. Maleficent was faster, and she grabbed Lita. She disappeared in a flash of green flames, her evil laughter filling the plaza in her absence.

"Damn!" Riku cursed.

"We have to get her back! Where do you think they went?" Abry demanded. She had finally gotten her friend back only to have her stolen again right in front of her. Needless to say, she really wanted to punch Maleficent's face in right now.

"How am I supposed to know! The only place I knew she ever stayed in was Hollow Bastion, but she's not stupid. She won't return there with Lita. She'll probably go where we least expect it. Rrrh, she's seriously gonna pay for this…" growled Riku. What's with that? He had reconnected with Lita at last, how dare Maleficent intervene again? When was she going to leave him and his friends alone? "Once we find her, we're teaching her a lesson she'll never forget, got it?"

"You don't need to tell me! Let's give her a reason to fear us!" Abry was getting pumped despite the circumstances. Even though her best friend had been kidnapped, she was about to go on a journey to take out the great evil sorceress once and for all! She couldn't help being a little excited.

"All right then. The gummy ships are at the mansion, let's get moving!" Riku immediately ran off.

Abry paused to ask Roxas and Haru, "You guys coming?"

Haru replied simply, "I'll work from here. I'd be of little use to you in the field." She turned and left for her house.

Roxas smiled sadly and answered, "I'm sorry, I can't. Someone has to protect the town in case something decides to attack while defenses are low."

Abry thought about this and nodded. "Yeah, I guess I can see that. Well, we'll be back soon, with Lita and leaving the world with one less evil witch!"

~Fin…

For Now…

**A/N: **_So, this is the end of part one of this story! I plan to start working on the sequel in which Abry and Riku go after Lita and Maleficent but I'm a huge slacker so that will take some serious work on my part. The second part will be more difficult to write than this half because there's a lot more I have to expand on that I didn't bother with in my basic outline, whereas I had already planned a good portion of this half out beforehand. There are places and quests and thoughts I have to fill in, and it'll take a while for me to do all that. _

_Anyway, I want to thank everybody who took the time to read this story of mine. I really appreciate it! Arigato gozaimasu, minna-san!_

**Edit**: _I'm finally getting the sequel written. _Finding the Light_, it's called, and I'm literally in the process of writing it right now (7-7-12). I know, I'm terrible for taking this long to write it! To those of you reading this story for the first time, you can go right on to the sequel! Good for you! For those of you who read it before now, I am truly sorry for the wait. Thank you so much for your patience! _


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